Why Digital Healthcare Needs to Work For Providers, Not Against Them

There once was fear that automated teller machines, better known today as ATMs, were going to replace human bank tellers. Critics railed against the technology, citing that it would depersonalize the banking experience. What it ultimately did, however, was completely modernize and streamline banking, eliminating lengthy lines in lobbies and leaving human tellers free for more complex customer needs than a simple cash withdrawal. 

Today, the healthcare industry today is not unlike the banking sector when ATMs first arrived. Many providers have tried-and-true practices that they are hesitant to change. And like banking, which has seen considerable technological advancements since those first ATMs decades ago, healthcare is ripe for positive “disruption” via technology. 

But to reap the full benefits that digital healthcare can provide for patient treatment, the tech must work for providers, not against them. Luckily, just like ATMs, digital technology can free providers to focus on more complicated tasks while letting the technology cover initial contact and day-to-day basics. 

Physician interest in digital healthcare is growing

In 2016, the American Medical Association conducted an extensive survey on physicians’ motivations and expectations for using digital clinical tools. They then repeated the same survey three years later in 2019. The results of the follow-up survey showed an increase in usage of digital health tools by physicians. 

In addition, physicians expressed an increase in two key motivations for digital health tools: 

• digital healthcare can allow physicians to provide care remotely 
• digital health tools can help reduce stress/burnout

It’s important to keep in mind that these survey results were obtained before the onset of COVID-19, so results from a survey today would likely show an even greater interest in digital health.

What’s stopping digital healthcare’s continued penetration

While the pandemic helped digital health advocates broaden the appeal of tools like telehealth, several barriers still stand in the way of digital healthcare’s continued penetration. 

One significant factor is concern on the part of physicians that they simply don’t have the time, capacity, or ability to learn new digital tools. Practices are already burdened by demands from patients, regulators, and their staff. Providers are often skeptical that adding “another tool” will make an appreciable difference to their workflows. 

Luckily, apps like PainScript understand that successful healthcare technology begins with the providers. That’s why our own team—deeply experienced in the world of pain management and behavioral healthcare—works to broaden opportunities for patient care, revenue expansion, and litigation protection directly for practices and providers first.

With a strong focus on the provider, digital healthcare technology can enhance workflows, integrate within existing workflows, relieve physician burdens, increase productivity, and ultimately, lead to improved patient outcomes. 

PainScript is a clinically proven digital evaluation and management platform that helps physicians ensure their patients adhere to care plans and medication protocols. To learn more about how we’re transforming digital healthcare, please click here to request a demo.

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